Cruel: The dogs which were being taken to a chain of restaurants in south-west China

Crammed into tiny cages, unable to stand and deprived of food and water, these dogs endured terrible suffering on a truck bound for a chain of restaurants.

The harrowing pictures show the cruel conditions in which 1,500 of the animals were found when the truck was stopped at a toll gate by highway police and animal rescue volunteers in Chongqing, south-west China.

The truck was stacked high with cages, each containing several dogs in pitiful condition.

Rescue workers lift the cages from the truck which was stopped at a toll by highway police

The animals were moved to a nearby farm by volunteers from the Chongqing Animal Protection Association who gave them food, water and emergency treatment.

Sadly some of the dogs were already dead and rescue workers were unable to save other who were dying.

Pitiful: More than 1,500 dogs were crammed together in cages so tiny they couldn't even stand

Suffering: Many of the dogs were dead or dying, having been deprived of food and water

Volunteer Xiao Lu said: 'When they [the dogs] saw us they were groaning, but some were so exhausted and dying that they didn't even have the strength to make a sound.'

He said: 'The dog peddler said his truck was only loaded with 700 dogs, but there are at least 1500.'

Dog continues to be a popular meal in the Far East, with many in China favouring the meat, particularly during the winter.

The incident comes just months after police in Thailand rescued more than 1,000 dogs that were being transported to Vietnam.

The dogs were being taken across the Mekong river in Laos as prices for stray dogs and pets in rural Thai villages can reach as much as $33 an animal.